Within Shades of Grey
by ToThePokeArk
Summary: Touko has found the 6 sages, yet she yearns to find the mysterious boy N. Ghetsis however is still on the loose and cooking up a new plan for domination, and he plans to use both N and Touko. Meanwhile a new threat lurks in Unova, unknown to all.
1. Chapter 1

"Well that's that," Looker said as the last sage was led away by the police. He turned to Touko. "Oh I have some news that you might be interested in."

Touko leaned in an inch, she was anxious for any information.

"Someone I know has spotted a person who resembles N in another region. He was seen with a Dragon type Pokemon. Now that we have the sages in for questioning, I am going to go overseas to pursue him."

Touko`s stomach twisted when she heard him mention N. Ever since her last battle with him and his abrupt disappearance, she had been thinking about him constantly. When Looker had approached her a few days after that fateful last battle and asked her to help him with the task of finding 6 of the 7 escaped sages, she accepted, not just for justice, but because she wished to know more answers about Team Plasma, especially regarding their mysterious leader N. It was strange, though he had been her rival and even her enemy to some extent, she had grown somewhat fond of him. She never found herself able to feel any anger or resentment towards him, instead she felt some pity for him and sadness for the life that was taken from him by Ghetsis, who had deceived his own child. But despite all this, Touko also felt an incredible admiration towards N. N wasn't a bad guy. He was filled with much love, Touko could tell from passionately he fought for those he loved. But his love was directed only at Pokemon, Ghetsis has starved his heart of human love, crippling the boy socially. N grew up with Pokemon and saw them as friends but because of Ghetsis`s manipulation, N was exposed only to Pokemon that had been treated cruelly by man, leaving him with a bitter taste of his own kind. Secluded and deprived of human love, N was a broken person. Yet he pursued what he believed to be right with only the well-being of his Pokemon friends in mind, never was his goal, his dream, ever selfish. Unfortunately, before Touko could learn more about him, he vanished. She could hardly blame him. His entire world had crumbled before his very eyes, his life was revealed to be noting but a manipulated lie. It made her heart bleed. Part of Touko longed to give him friendship, but she knew he was severely damaged, and friendship with another human would be difficult, if not impossible for him now. Still, she wished she could've tried. Touko, from deep within her heart, wanted to find the odd boy who intrigued her so.

So for several months she searched throughout Unova for the sages. None of the them could provide any adequate information on N`s whereabouts though, however, some mentioned him to her, each time bringing a twang to Touko`s stomach. If they didn't mention him, their presence was enough to remind her and to feed her determination. But now…he was in another region entirely. Finding him seemed hopeless.

"Oh," She said. Looker smiled, apparently pleased with the downhearted statement.

"Thank you so much for your help. Thanks to you we are another step closer to finding both N and Ghetsis!" He patted her soldier and then quickly departed towards the other officers and leapt into his car. Touko sighed as he left. "Well what do I do now?" She thought bitterly. There was nothing more for her here in Unova, she had seen and done just about everything. She would have liked to go with Looker across seas to find N, but he was in such a rush that he was gone before she could even think of how to ask him. She thought to search for N on her own, but she didn't know what region he was spotted in, and even if she did, her Reshiram wouldn't know how to get there, they had never been outside of Unova. Right now she figured it was probably best just to head home, she was tired and needed a rest. She pulled out a poke ball from her bag and pressed the middle button, expanding it. A glowing light issued from it, illuminating a large mass in front of her. Suddenly a large white Dragon pokemon stood in place of it, a concerned look appeared in its eyes when it saw Touko`s downcast expression.

"Don't worry Resh, I'm fine."

Her Reshiram reminded her of N too, she clutched her stomach as it twisted. Resh nuzzled her with it's nose, hoping to cheer her up. Though Touko had had Resh for only a short while, the two had grown very attached to one another.

"I'm Fine," Touko said again.

Resh wasn't fooled. It narrowed its eyes and growled softly.

"Really Resh!" She giggled half-heartedly and scratched its head, "Come on, lets go home for a little while. I think we all need a rest."

Resh pressed its face against her and purred, then it backed up and bowed its head for Touko. Touko climbed up on its back and situated herself so she wouldn't fall off. When she was ready to fly, she scratched behind its ear.

"Lets fly Resh!"

Resh roared and bits of its fur glowed red as flames, it extended its wings and lifted into the air with a mighty thrust.

Bianca sat outside, her musharna drifted lazily behind her as she groomed her Tepig. The Tepig`s eyes were closed and it was smiling in relaxed delight. Touko and her Reshiram landed nearby them, causing the ground to tremble knocking both Bianca and the Tepig to the ground. The musharna hovered down to Bianca.

"Mush?"

Bianca sat up, frazzled, but overall happy.

"Touko!" She squealed and jumped up to greet her friend. Her Tepig grumbled a bit, then followed after her when he realized that Musharna and Bianca had already left. Bianca bounded up to Touko and leapt off the ground to hug her, Touko stumbled back but then returned the hug. These kinds of greetings were to be expected from Bianca.

"Touko you're back! Did you find them? Did you? Did you? Did you?"

Touko smiled weakly, "Yeah, and only a few put up a fight."

Bianca noticed Touko`s gloom and backed up, a worried look flashed across her face.

"Touko…are you okay?"

"Hmm?"

"You seem down. You're usually much more optimistic."

Touko`s eyes widened for a split second, she hadn't realized that her feelings were showing plainly through her face and voice.

"Oh I'm fine, I'm just tired, very tired."

It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the truth either. Bianca's eyes narrowed skeptically.

"Are you suuuuuuure?"

"Mhmm," Touko smiled, "I've been all over Unova searching for those sages, I'm worn out."

Bianca gave a bubbly grin, glad to hear that her friend wasn't in emotional turmoil.

"Well then you should rest inside silly! I bet you're mom misses you too!"

Bianca shoved Touko towards her house. Touko didn't fight her, it never made any difference.

The door to Touko`s house flung open as Bianca pulled her inside. Touko`s mom was sitting at the table and jumped up in shock at the intrusion. When she saw who the intruders were though, she settled back into her seat and laughed at herself.

"Mama Touko!" Bianca sang as she twirled around the house, "Little Touko is back!"

"I see that," Touko`s mother replied, still laughing, "Give me a minute to recuperate myself. You two gave me quite a scare there."

"Come on Mom, you're not fifty," grinned Touko. Her mom smiled warmly at the joke and stood up, holding her arms out.

"Welcome back Touko."

Touko rushed over and gave her mother a hug. She truly did miss her. Her mom kissed her forehead like she did when Touko was but a toddler, then she put her hand on her daughter's shoulder and looked at her grown up girl.

"Look at you, out fighting bad guys and saving the world! Your father would be so proud."

Touko`s father had died of a severe illness when Touko was 7. Touko`s mother was tearing up with the thought of her husband interlaced with the pride she felt for her daughter. She cleared her throat and tried to change the subject.

"Now, I know you are tired but I think that both Bianca and I want to hear about your latest adventures."

Touko blushed, overwhelmed with the combined energy of her mother and Bianca in one room at one time. But their positive attitudes were helping to raise hers after the earlier disappointment.

"Okay, well what do you want to hear abo-"

"Did you see Cheren any?" Bianca blurted out. Her hand flew to her mouth and a wave of embarrassment washed over her face, "Oh, sorry."

"No its fine," Touko reassured her friend. She knew how much Bianca cared for their friend Cheren.

"I saw him twice only. Once on Route 5, near Nimbasa city, then again on Victory Road where we battled."

"You two battled?" her mother shook her head, "That seems to be all you kids ever want to do anymore."

Bianca turned back to Touko, "Well come on, who won?"

"Uh…" Touko began nervously, trying not to sound arrogant, "I did. But Cheren has gotten stronger by a ton. He was tough to beat."

"What happened after that?"

"Well, he told me to tell you 'Hi' of course," Bianca's face lighted up when she heard this. Touko continued, "He also mentioned that he was offered a job in law enforcement. He wants to try to be an investigative police officer or something. He said he would be leaving for training in a week or two afterwards. Otherwise I haven't heard from him since."

Her mother nodded, "When that boy gets into something he dedicates all his attention to it."

"Oh I wonder if he's lonely," Bianca sighed, "I've been so scared to call him because I don't want to disturb any of his training."

"You should call him," Touko said, "I think he would like it."

"Yes," Touko`s mom agreed, "Everyone, even a diligent worker like Cheren, needs a break at times and to know that his friends are thinking of him."

"You're right! I will have to call him soon. But ohh…I'm going to have to find something to talk about, nothing exciting has happened with me lately," Bianca's cheeks were a bright red.

"You'll find something, I'm sure," Touko`s mom said to her, then turned back to her daughter, "What happened to Looker after you found the last sage?"

Suddenly the gloomy feelings came over her again. She sighed.

"He left to go find N in another region…And said thank you."

Her mother unknowingly continued to hammer the disappointment back into her.

"So Touko, are you glad its all finally over? You wont ever have to worry about Team Plasma again."

Touko`s stomach wrenched, she stammered trying to find a good cover up answer.

"Uh…well, um, I guess…"

"You guess?"

They both gave her a funny look, Touko panicked.

"Well, there is…I think, maybe, it just seemed…it just seemed that maybe it was all over too fast I- I think."

They continued to stare, as if wanting more explanation.

"I mean, I'm not really used to having nothing to do. I just feel like I'm still in the dark after all this. And just when I started getting some answers, It was all over. And now I will probably never get to know, I doubt I'll ever even see _him_ again," Touko gasped as the last sentence fell out of her mouth. She stared back in horror at her mother and her best friend. She hadn't meant for everything to just tumble out like it had, it just did, and she had no control over it.

"I'm sorry, I should be relieved, I know. I guess I had just gotten used to always having something to do."

"Its all right," her mother said, "I'm glad you let it out."

Bianca's eyes widened, "Oh so _that's_ why you seemed so down!"

"I felt that something might be wrong when I hugged you," added Touko`s mom, "Maternal instincts I guess."

"Well I'll get over it. I can always train. And then maybe I can challenge the Elite Four again, I don't know…"

"Touko," her mother stopped her, "I know you. Since you were born you couldn't sit still in one place. Your spirit was made for adventure. I was foolish and thought that after these recent events you would have finally have had your fill of adventure and would want to settle down. Now I see that I was wrong. I should have known better. Touko, you wont be happy staying here in Unova."

"Yeah I remember that time you got Cheren and I to follow you into the tall grass when we were 10. Ahahaha, we had a Lillipup chase us all the way home!"

"You see Touko," said her mother, "Its in your heart."

"Well it doesn't matter anyways," Touko groaned, "Do you know how hard it is to get a ticket to another region?"

The three sat in silence for a bit. Outside you could hear Reshiram and Bianca's pokemon playing. Bianca coughed to break the awkward silence. Suddenly, Touko`s mom slammed her hands down on the table. Bianca and Touko jumped in their skins at the outburst.

"Wait right here sweetie, I just remembered something!"

She got up and ran into the kitchen. Bianca and Touko stared at one another and then turned back to the kitchen. Touko`s mother came back out holding a small piece of paper.

"When Looker came to talk to me about having you help him, he gave me his number in case you found any additional information. I had completely forgotten it until just now. Perhaps, if he hasn't departed yet he will let you go with him."

"Oh Mom!" Touko cried and flung her arms around her, "Thank you, thank you so much! I promise to write everyday and to visit whenever I can, and I will always-"

Her mom laughed, "If you keep talking he will have already left. Nothing is definite yet, so be careful not to get your hopes up too soon."

Touko nodded and pulled out her Xtransceiver. She punched in the numbers off the paper quickly, scared to be too slow now. She watched the screen anxiously as Bianca and her mother came behind her to watch over her shoulders. One ring. 2 rings. 3 rings. 4 rings. 5 rings. Touko`s hands started to shake, she felt like she was trying to catch a rare pokemon with her last ultra ball.

"Hello?" a sudden voice came from the Xtransceiver. Looker appeared on the screen. It looked like he was in a Pokecenter or something.

"Looker?" Touko asked, "Its me, Touko."

"Ah Touko," Looker beamed, "Did you happen to stumble upon any information on Ghetsis by chance?"

"Um…no," replied Touko, "But I was hoping to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"Will you need any help searching for N overseas? If so I'd be more than willing to help."

"Really? You haven't had enough adventure yet? Well I guess all those things I heard about you were no joke, you're the real deal kid. Luckily I don't depart until tomorrow, and the captain is a good friend of mine, I bet he'd let me carry on an extra."

Touko glowed with joy, "Oh no fooling? Thank you Looker!"

"Eh not so fast," Looker said. Touko`s joy faded, she couldn't fathom what could be wrong.

"This is a big trip," continued Looker, "I don't know how long we will be there and its very different from Unova. You could be gone from home for a whole year, maybe less, or maybe more. Do you understand?"

"Yes I understand," Touko said politely yet firmly, "But sir, I've never wanted anything more in my life."

"I thought you'd say that," he smiled, "But I must know one more thing…"

"Yes sir?"

"Is your mother okay with this?"

"She sure is!" Touko`s mother cried and made her way into the camera. "As much as I hate to admit it, my girl is all grown up. She's ready to make her own choices," She looked at Touko who was now on the brink of tears, "And I'm ready to support them."

"Excellent!" Looker clapped his hands together, "Well Touko, all I can say now is to meet me in Castelia City tomorrow around 10 AM. At 10:30 we sail for Olivine City in Johto!"

"I'll be there sir, don't you worry!" Touko assured him happily. He gave her a thumbs up and the call ended. Touko turned back to her mom and Bianca, bursting with excitement.

"Oh my gosh I cant believe I'm going to Johto!"

The three girls then began to scream and hug in joy.

- - chp 2

A tall man stood beneath a large dragon skeleton, the skull suspended by wires to the ceiling. The man was very clean-cut in appearance, he wore a smooth black suit and had illustrious short cut black hair that was slicked back nicely. He looked to be in his early 30s and was a handsome man for his age. His perfection was only thrown off by a black eye patch that covered his left eye while his other eye was a pale blue. He looked up at the exhibit holding his chin in ponder.

Lenora, the owner of this museum and the Gym Leader of this town was watching him curiously. Something about him reminded her of someone, but she just couldn't put her mind to who. She walked down to the main floor of the museum.

"Hello Sir, I'm Lenora, the owner of this museum. I take it you are a fan of Dragon Pokemon, yes?"

He turned, a little surprised at her sudden appearance. He smiled warmly, "Nice to meet you. But I am actually a fan of any prehistoric pokemon in general. This one is particularly nice however."

"Don't think me rude sir, but have you visited my museum before? You seem very familiar. Perhaps we have battled before?"

"Oh no, no, no," he chuckled, "I am not a trainer. And I am new to this area. I come from Kanto, I'm a professor of Paleontology you see. My name is Doctor Nahath."

"Oh," Lenora said, "Well sorry for the mistake Doctor Nahath. I must say though, it is nice to see someone who's as interested in the ancients as myself."

"They are fascinating."

"Yes, well, if you have any questions feel free to ask me or my husband, he's the man up there," she pointed towards the opening of the Gym entrance. She then began to leave but turned to look at the strange man again. He still felt familiar.

"Doctor Nahath?"

"Yes madam?"

"I am sorry to pry into your life, but how did you hurt your eye?"

His cold blue eye narrowed and he flashed a plastic smile at her, "I had a mishap with a spearow back at home," he explained without missing a beat, "Don't feel bad, a lot of people ask about it."

"Ah," she replied. She still had the nagging feeling that she knew him, but she decided to shake it off. It probably wasn't important anyways. "Have a good day sir."

"You too."

He stared at the dragon skeleton a little longer, then left for outside. She, like all the others, was perfectly ignorant. And he was pleased. The day was nice and calm, he strolled away from the town and went westwards towards the gardens of the area. Anyone seeing him would see nothing more than a gentleman out to enjoy a daily stroll through the gardens.

He came upon a hedge at the far end of the gardens. He looked around, and then disappeared behind it. There was an enclosed trail that, if ducking, he could follow it with ease. Eventually it cleared our into a hidden opening. He stood in the middle of the area in silence.

Finally he said, "Its clear."

Suddenly 3 men appeared out of nowhere surrounding him. Doctor Nahath didn't flinch.

"You didn't leave me waiting long," he said simply.

"Of course," the middle one bowed, "We live to serve you Ghetsis."

"Be wary when you call me that," the 'doctor' warned, "The people outside of here know me as Doctor Nahath. I have dyed and cut my hair, changed my garb, and even covered my red eye to be sure no one recognizes me. Everyone, besides you three, have proven ignorant of my true identity so far. And it must stay that way until my goal has been achieved."

"Yes sir," they all said simultaneously.

"So any news?"

"Yes, she has left for Johto in search of Lord N. Should we stop her?"

"No," Ghetsis said, "Everything is coming together well. You boys told her that you were instructed not to look for me right?"

"Of course, just like you asked."

"Good. And we should be able to track her much easily from those orbs I told you to give her."

"But we don't understand, what is it that you are planning to use her for?"

Ghetsis smiled darkly, "That girl you see, is special. Like Lord N, she is a Hero of Unova. To change Unova it seems we need two Heroes to awaken the last legend of Unova. Kyurem, the Ice dragon! She will find Lord N, if anyone can influence him, she can. He finds her intriguing. Together we will have them awaken Kyurem for me to capture. Then Plasma can return."

"And Lord N?"

"We will have our king back."

The Triad bowed, pleased by this news. Ghetsis however, still had no intentions on giving off boy power, _his_ power. "Lord" N was nothing more than a figure head, an icon that followers would look up to and love, and whose fragile mind would be easy for him to manipulate. But Ghetsis still had doubt, he didn't know how exactly his plan would play out or when it would be completed. But he was a patient man. Ghetsis stood up taller and the Shadow Triad tilted their eyes up at him from their bowed heads.

"Gentlemen, the disbanding of Team Plasma did not mark the end, but rather the beginning of the new world. Keep track of the girl, always know where she is at, but do not interfere unless I instruct you to do so. Report back to me daily by Xtransceiver," Ghetsis waved his hand at them as a sign of dismissal. The Triad vanished almost instantly and Ghetsis straightened out his collar.

"It has begun."

Author`s Notes: I know what you are probably all thinking, "Wheres N? Where`s the Ferris wheel shipping you promised?" Its coming don't you worry. N will appear in the next submission. As for the Ferris wheel shipping, it cant just happen in a day ahaha. The fun part about these stories is that it has to grow, but don't worry, it will be coming and I hope I give it justice! But also keep in mind that I have to keep a story going so not every word of this will be shippy (though a lot of it will XD)

In my version, the visor Ghetsis used to wear covered his blue eye. He has one red eye and one blue eye. Creepy eh? Its not canon, but I`m going to have to have some literary freedom here. I still will keep as true as I am able to though.

Now what I really wanted to give were the warnings. I played Pokemon Black, not white, and this is based on that storyline so Touko has Reshiram and N has Zekrom. I know some people are sensitive about it but if it is too bothersome you can reverse it in your head. I like it either way personally though.

On that note, Touya does not exist in this world. Do not expect him to appear. They do not exist at the same time in the game, thus do not exist at the same time in this story.

Another thing, um, the rating is for later. This story gets progressively…morbid. Not sexually morbid, gosh no. I`ve been reading a lot of Dean Koontz lately so, yeah ahaha. Anyways the morbid side story that will overall tie into the main story should not begin until the 3rd submission. Just thought I should warn yall. I hope you like the character though, he`s gonna be a gem!

Anyways, yeah, N is coming soon! (hes so much fun to write for!)


	2. Chapter 2

Olivine City was nothing like Touko had imagined. She had thought it would be this huge, magnificent city with many large towering skyscrapers, but instead, it was a rather quant little port unlike anything she was used to. Sailors and their machops were tying their boats to the docks, others were building or repairing theirs. She even saw some farmers walk by with miltanks and trainers with Pokemon she had never heard of before. Then there was the lighthouse. She had never seen one in person before, she only saw them in old storybooks. It was a magnificent structure, Touko gaped at it in astonishment.

"So what do you think?" Looker asked, "Different from Unova, eh?"

"Very," Touko nodded, "I like it though, the cities of Unova can be a bit too hectic at times."

"I agree," he said, "But cities do tend to have the best cases!"

He winked and looked at her as if expecting an energetic agreement. She just stared at him with one eyebrow raised. After about 3 seconds of silent awkwardness he finally continued.

"Okay, my friend-who-shall-remain-nameless spotted "N" somewhere near Goldenrod City. I will be covering that area. South-east to Goldenrod City is Ilex Forest which leads you into Azalea Town. You should search there."

"Wouldn't it be better for us to both search Goldenrod City if that was where he was seen?"

Looker sighed, "Well, he was seen between Azalea and Goldenrod, he was just closer to Goldenrod."

"Oh."

"I'll tell you what, you go on ahead and you can search Goldenrod some if you want. I'll catch up. I have some business to take care of here…" he rubbed his hands together and looked towards the lighthouse. Touko rolled her eyes.

"Alright, you said Goldenrod was South-east of here?"

"Yes! Oh and Touko,"

"Whaaat?"

"You can use your super rod to catch some interesting water pokemon here!"

Touko slowly turned and glared at him, "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind," she said cheerfully, yet not hiding her annoyance. He took no notice and waved cheerfully.

"Good luck!" He cried before running off.

Touko sighed as he left. She liked the guy, she honestly did, but spending a long boat ride with him to another region was far more than she could handle. He had spent the entire ride dramatically describing all his ridiculous stories. She heard about all his "great adventures", the women who swooned over him, and even his birth at one point. It was painful. She had once believed Cheren to be the most egotistical person she knew, but she had had no idea. Cheren was subtle and humble in comparison. All in all, she was relieved to finally have a break from Looker, and especially that she didn't have to go through the entire journey with him.

She started for the path ahead of her when her Xtransceiver began to ring. It was Bianca.

"Bianca!" she cried as she picked it up. She already missed her hyperactive friend.

"Touko how are you? I heard you made it to Johto safely. Getting homesick yet?"

"Actually yes, a little," Touko replied, "But at the same time I am super excited!"

"That's great! So have you guys found N yet?"

Touko sighed. "No, Looker wanted to do God only knows what in Olivine city. I decided to go on by myself. But I haven't seen a thing yet. Honestly I just began."

Bianca raised her eyebrow, "You mean you aren't going to be exploring at all?"

"No, I'll be exploring! On the way I mean. I've got a ways to go before I get to the area he's supposedly at."

"Wow you are really determined to find him." Suddenly her eyes widened, "Touko!"

"What?"

"Do you have a think for N or something? Ooh you do, don't you! A crush! A scandal! A-"

"Bianca!" Touko cried. Her cheeks burned a hot red. "What are you talking about? I've spent a year fighting him!"

"Well I remember a while back, in some town, I met this old couple, and the lady said she met her husband by always beating him in Pokemon battles when they were kids, and-"

"Bianca really," Touko said, "I barely know him."

"But you _want _to know him."

Touko`s cheeks burned hotter, "Its just because he's…an enigma. And I feel that its my duty to finish all this Team Plasma mess. To know what exactly had happened."

Bianca gave her a suspicious and amused smile. "Suuuuuuure…"

Touko glowered at her, "Did you just call to create imaginary drama or something? Speaking of which," a gleam came to her eyes, "have you called Cheren yet?"

Now it was Bianca's turn to blush.

"N-no! I really don't know what to say to him…"

"Come on Bianca, you are the most talkative person I know."

Bianca took off her hat and began to play with it nervously.

"Well okay, I will call him soon I suppose. But I should probably be going now. Your mother told me to tell you 'Hi' and that she loves you."

"Thank you, tell her I said I love her too."

"Okeydokey!"

"See ya B!"

"Bye!"

Touko put the Xtransceiver back in her pocket. Why _do_ I want to find him so badly? She shook her head. There was no time to wonder now, she was on a mission. She pulled out a poke ball and called for Bartleby, her Samurot.

"Samur!" It cried and raised its head proudly.

"Are you ready for a new adventure Bartleby?"

"Samurot!" He roared.

"Perfect!"

Then they together, like they had a year ago, began their very next journey.

Touko had never seen the stars so bright in a city before. Usually the city lights dulled the stars, but here they still shone nicely, maybe not as much as they would had she been in the woods, but they were still unusually bright for a city. Like Olivine, Goldenrod City was also much smaller than she imagined. People weren't swarming in the streets like they did in Castelia City and the buildings didn't tower over everything like they did in Black City. Overall she found the city to be quite pleasant. So far Johto was leaving a very good taste in her mouth, everyone was friendly, the Pokemon were interesting, even the air was nice. But Touko was tired, flat-out tired. She had spent the entire day traveling to Goldenrod and battling many trainers on the way. Her pokemon were exhausted and she had to retire all of them to their pokeballs. Seeing the city's Pokecenter was a relief after the long day. They could finally rest.

Like back at home, the Pokecenter had a warm feel to it. Touko approached the front desk wearily.

"Hello, how may I help you?" asked the pink-haired nurse happily.

"I would like to rest my pokemon please," Touko replied.

"Okay," the nurse took the pokeballs from Touko, "May I have your name?"

"Its Touko."

"Alright Touko, we will call you when your pokemon are ready."

Touko nodded and left to take a seat in the waiting room. A girl with choppy auburn hair was sitting nearby petting an umbreon in her lap. With each stroke the girl made, the umbreon`s blue markings glowed delightfully. Touko stared at it a bit.

"I thought umbreons had gold markings."

The umbreaon`s trainer looked up to see who was speaking. She grinned, seemingly happy that someone decided to talk to her.

"They do usually," the girl explained, "but Nimbus here is a special umbreon. He's what you'd call a shiny pokemon."

"I thought shiny pokemon were just fairy tales! That's really cool."

Touko looked a t the umbreon with amazement.

"You can pet him if you like," the girl giggled. Touko reached over and scratched behind his ear.

"So why did you name him Nimbus?"

"I found him when he was just a little eevee," The girl explained, "Or rather, he found me. Anyways, shine eevees have a white coat, and Nimbus's was as white as a nimbus cloud!" The girl smiled at Nimbus, he looked up and returned the smile. It was evident that the two cared deeply for one another. She glanced back up at Touko and held out her hand.

"I'm Rhea by the way."

Touko returned the gesture, "I'm Touko," she smiled. Then she remembered why she was here in Goldenrod. "Oh, I was curious, have you lived here for a while?"

Rhea snorted, "Psh, no. I'm here to challenge the gym."

"Umbre!" Nimbus cried excitedly.

"Oh."

"Yeah, I left home a few months ago. I'm a late starter though, I'm 13."

"Wow, I started about a year ago, when I was 15. I'm not from Johto though, so I guess its different."

"I though you sounded foreign! So are you here to challenge the gym too?"

Touko shook her head, "No, I'm actually here looking for someone. Tell me, have you seen a strange boy around 16 or 17 years old? He has long green hair, grey-green eyes, and he probably had a big black dragon pokemon with him."

Rhea scratched her head, "Hmm…no I didn't see any dragon…Oh! But I think I did see a green haired guy. Weird fellow right? I don't remember his eye color though…"

"Touko, your pokemon are healed!" the Nurse said over the intercom suddenly. Touko turned back to Rhea.

"That's me! Please don't go anywhere yet, I'll be right back!"

"Okay."

Touko ran up to the front. _Its him! Its him! I know its him! Its gotta be him! _She thought excitedly. She just had to retrieve her pokemon and find out where he was seen, then she could be on her way!

The nurse wore an embarrassed smile. Touko noticed her Victini, Loki, sitting on the counter anxiously.

"I'm sorry! It wouldn't let me put him back in his pokeball," the nurse said.

"Oh its fine," Touko giggled, "Loki can be funny like that. But I could use its help anyways tonight."

"You don't plan on going out tonight do you?" the nurse gave her a worried look.

"Most likely. Its something urgent. Why?"

"You shouldn't go out tonight, there is to be a big storm from what I hear."

Touko gave her a quizzical look.

"But it was perfectly clear outside when I got here. I'm sure I will be fine either way though, I'm a tough trainer."

She picked up her pokeballs and left with Loki on her shoulder. The nurse stared at her open mouthed in shock. They returned to Rhea who was sitting very patiently next to Nimbus. Loki hopped down and sniffed at Nimbus.

"Ta ta ta tini!" It chattered happily.

"Breon!" Nimbus replied in a friendly manner.

"Nimbus seems to have made a new friend," Rhea laughed, "Cool pokemon by the way. Never seen one like it before."

"Thanks, he's a Victini," Touko said, then returned to her mission. "So tell me more about this green haired boy you saw?"

"All right," She began, "He was a little strange. He asked to speak to Nimbus, I haven't the slightest clue what he meant exactly, but I let him. He seemed pleased with whatever he heard but at the same time he got kind of sad. He then said thank you and left, like he had just remembered something important."

"That's him! That's him!" Touko cried. She couldn't believe it, but there was no one else it could've been. "Tell me, where did you see him?"

"In Ilex forest. On my way here actually. Its by the day care just south of here."

"Did you see where he left to?"

Rhea tapped her lip, "Well that's the other weird thing. He just disappeared into the woods. Very strange. I assumed he was just an adamant bug catcher."

"So he's probably still in there, or near there at least?"

"Maybe. It was just yesterday morning."

Touko grinned joyfully, she about hugged the girl in sheer gratitude.

"Thank you so much Rhea! This helps so much, good luck on your gym battle! Come on Loki."

Without wasting any time, Touko ran out the door and into the night.

Ilex Forest really wasn't far from Goldenrod at all. It only took Touko about 15 minutes by bike to get there.

It was a fascinating forest, there was no paved path running through it like in the forest back home. There were no people in it either, Touko could understand this, it would be natural for people to prefer to avoid this path and go another way rather than risk getting lost inside its maze. Perhaps N thought it would be a good hiding place…

She shuddered. Now she was questioning her decision to look for N at this time. It was late, the sun had gone down about an hour ago, and the forest was very dark and quiet. Luckily the moonlight was tricking between the thick trees providing a little bit of source for the traveler. Loki sat on her shoulder, its big eyes darting around nervously at any sound. Touko reached up and patted its head to comfort the frightened pokemon and herself.

"Its okay Loki, most wild pokemon are probably resting now," Touko said, but she still worried deep down. The nocturnal pokemon were sometimes the more violent. They walked a little farther when Loki`s ears perked straight up.

"Victini!" it cried.

Suddenly an enormous flock of hoothoots flew at them. Touko lifted her arms to protect her face, she had no time to shout any orders to Loki. Luckily the victini didn't need to be told what to do, it held onto its trainer's shoulder and shot fire at hoothoots that came close to hurting Touko. But then, just as fast as it had started, it was all over, and the flock was flying off into the distance behind them.

"What was that about?" Touko wondered as Loki shook its fur. "It was as if, as if they were fleeing from something."

It soon began to grow darker and much harder to see, much more than it had been before. A breeze began to whip her ponytail around and the thick smell of rain hung heavily in the air. She looked up to see that the moon was completely covered by dark clouds now. Thunder rumbled throughout the forest.

"Oh no…"

She grabbed Loki and began sprinting through the possible 'path' in front of her. Rain soon began to pelt them. Loki let out a cry of anguish, it hated the rain. Touko fumbled for its pokeball and called Loki back into it. The wind then rammed Touko against a tree as she put the pokeball back in her bag. She yelped and started running again, now more than unsure of where she was going. The storm was making everything crazy, trees were parting and falling, small branches and pine cones slapped against her face and body, cutting her skin and clothes. The wind continued to push her body around in every random direction and her wet hair stung her as it slapped around her face and shoulders. Her hat flew off and disappeared into the trees, Touko barely noticed though as she ran frantically.

"HELP!" she screamed as loud as she could, but it was swallowed by the sounds of the roaring storm. Still she continued to run and clutched her bag tightly to her chest. She was growing weary as the wind picked up, flinging more and larger stuff around her. The last thing she saw was an especially thick branch flying towards her before she blacked out completely.

Pidgeys were chirping as the sun rose. N was already up. He loved mornings. The air was always so crisp in the mornings and everything was just beginning to wake. He loved seeing the light of the sunrise seeping through the trees and hearing the flying pokemon sing. This morning however was a little different from other mornings. He had woken up a few hours ago to see the aftermath of the previous night's storm. It had seemed a violently brutal storm from what he heard while he was closed up in that horrid cabin. Now he could see for himself what it really did. The woods were in near ruins, yet everything seemed peaceful. Wild pokemon played as they normally did in the mornings, none seemed to be affected negatively by it. He smiled and looked up to the sky through the trees. It seemed much clearer and it was bluer than he had ever seen the sky. 'Funny how something so terrible and scary can leave a place so peaceful and nice,' he thought pleasantly.

Suddenly a small stab of pain ran through his right leg. He stopped for a minute and rubbed it. Then he lifted his leg and kick it slightly, making sure he hadn't overworked it. It seemed fine, it was healing nicely. He tried to work his leg as much as he could to promote its recovery. He had hurt it a month ago helping a young furret. But somehow, by chance (or by purpose he feared) he had been found by Concordia and Anthea, the goddesses of Team Plasma. He couldn't fathom how they had found him or why they were here in Johto. Their answer to that was 'fate', but he was still unsure, he was unsure of a lot of things now. He went with them though, he had no idea how to heal a human leg and he was still to afraid of man to allow one in one of the nearby towns work on it. Growing up, it had always been the goddesses who were his nurses, he had never required a doctor of any kind. But N hated the idea of being locked up in a house again, even if it were temporary, so he went outside as much as he could for physical therapy. He was off the crutch now and only had a slight limp. Soon he could leave and continue his journey again.

The sun sparkled through the tress as he entered a thicker part of the forest. He didn't feel like going to the main path again today, he sometimes ran into trainers there, and today he felt like being alone. He had come upon a young girl the other morning who, like many other trainers he had met on his journey, had pokemon who enjoyed living with them. It was so strange, growing up he thought that all domestic pokemon were miserable from their trainers, but then he met her…Touko…

He stopped. Why did his thoughts always return to her somehow? Shouldn't he be pondering his place in the world? Shouldn't he be trying to figure out who or what he is? But his ponders always seemed to revert back to her. It was true, since their last encounter N hadn't gone a day without thinking of her at least once. Perhaps it was because she was the first person to have made him question his ideals. Perhaps it was because she was the one who freed him from the façade he was living. She was the other hero…

N clutched his stomach. Sometimes thinking about her made his stomach twist. Part of him really regretted leaving her, he would have very much liked to have stayed and gotten to know her better. Touko was a fascinating human being, far more fascinating than any he had met thus far. But N knew that he was incapable of friendship with another human. He had no human heart. Besides she had her own friends. Why would she want to waste her time with a defective creature like him when she had two perfectly human friends who would do anything for her. Then she had her pokemon. He would have liked to talk to them more as well. It amazed him just how happy they were with Touko. Yes, he would have loved to have stayed for a bit. But he knew he had to escape for a while, and he couldn't allow for anything to keep him back. His crippled heart couldn't handle it.

A bush rustled behind him. N stopped and watched curiously. What new pokemon friend might he meet today? He crouched down slowly (careful not to hurt his leg) and rested his arms on his knees, staring intently at the bush. Several seconds had passed when suddenly a small, black, fox-like pokemon sprang out.

"Zorua!" it yipped.

"You again?" N cried, falling back a little. He regained his balance. "I told you, you don't have to follow me. Go back to Zoruark, I freed you all."

The zorua brought his chin to his paws and looked up at N, his butt lifted up and his tail wagging playfully.

"Zor!" he barked.

"Huh? You found something?"

The zorua yipped again and ran around in a circle excitedly.

"Well what is it?" N asked.

The zorua barked and then ran back into the bush. N hesitated, but soon followed after it. He was curious now, for the excited pokemon never told him what exactly he had found, he had only said, "Follow me."

Zorua led him on a path that he was familiar with. Still things were very different since the storm. Trees were uprooted and toppled over, some had even snapped in the middle and hung from a hinge of bark. The floor was cluttered with branches and leaves. The zorua in front of him still continued to walk in front of him, and would stop every so often to make sure N was following him. N could only wonder at what the pokemon was so intent on showing him.

Finally the zorua stopped near a fallen tree that had gotten lodged into the split of another tree, lifting it up slightly off the ground. The zorua poked its nose at a tangled brown mess beneath it, then looked at N pitifully.

"Zorua…" it whined, which N knew clearly meant, "She's hurt."

N kneeled down to get to the hurt creature. _"It must be a pokemon,"_ he thought, _"that got trapped in the storm."_ He carefully pulled the body mass out from beneath the tree and wiped off the brambles and leaves covering its soaked body. His hands soon felt a thick black cloth beneath the leaves and then lower down, he felt denim.

"Wait a minute…" he murmured. This thing could not be a pokemon. This thing looked…human. He held his hands by his face like he didn't know what to do with them, his fingers curled slightly in. He suddenly was over washed in fear, he didn't know what to do any more. He was too scared.

"Zorua!"

N turned his head to the anxious pokemon, then turned back to the girl. He gently rolled her over and removed the stands of hair covering her face. He gasped and froze again, trembling. _This could not be happening, there is no way this could be real. Of all people why, why her?_ His stomach twisted violently as he studied her unconscious body to make sure he wasn't just imagining this. _Maybe this is a dream…_He pinched himself. No, she was still there.

Just like she always returned to his thoughts, Touko had now returned to his life.

But how had she found him? Was she looking for him or was it just coincidental fate? He didn't know, but he did know that she was hurt, and hurt badly. He placed his hand on her upper chest to feel for a heart beat. He shuddered at her cold skin. _"Please don't let her be dead!" he thought miserably. But he was soon able to feel the weak beating of her heart. He sighed in relief. She was still alive. Weak but alive. He had to get her to shelter and warmth if she were to continue living however. Fear encased him, but he couldn't let her die. His slid his hands beneath her and scooped her up in his arms. She was so cold and wet against his warmth. He pulled her in closer hoping to warm her a little with his own body heat. To his shock she shivered and coughed. N froze with nervousness as Touko nuzzled against him unconsciously for more heat. He felt some of his heat rise to his face. _

_The zorua stared at N in amusement while the boy composed himself. Finally, he looked down at the zorua._

"_Friend, please lead the way to the cabin."_

_The zorua barked happily and bounded off into the woods. N followed, limping slightly, and carefully cradling the weak girl in his arms, afraid yet pleasantly happy. _

_Author`s notes: _

_Yay, finally the "N"troduction! Wowee I hadn't realized just how long these chapters were! Don't worry, things will be moving much faster from here on out. Cus now we got N and Touko together (muwahahah!) _

_Oh and that OC Rhea? She will be having her own spin-off series after this (I hope!) I just need to find time to write it._

_Next chapter brings shippy goodness and that other OC I warned you about ;D I`m uber excited! Almost done writing it now X3._


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